Cfp: Henry Sweet Society Colloquium 2025

The 2025 annual colloquium of the Henry Sweet Society for the History of Linguistic Ideas will be held from Wednesday 3 September to Friday 5 September 2025 at the Université de Reims Champagne-Ardenne (URCA, Reims, France).

The general theme of the colloquium is:

Linguistics and Rhetoric: A Tale of Two Frenemies

From its very beginnings the study of language in the Western world has been intimately related to rhetoric. Although the two branches eventually split, their mutual influence continues to this day, triggering at times lively discussions between the proponents of each field. Within this general theme, we welcome contributions on historical interaction between, on the one hand, language study and/or linguistics and, on the other hand, any kind of traditional lore on eloquence (such as Western rhetoric) from any part of the world. Contributions may, for example, explore questions related to the transfer of metalinguistic terminology and theoretical notions or to methodological controversies involving both fields.

Confirmed speaker: Anne Grondeux (CNRS – Université Sorbonne Nouvelle)

In addition, we cordially invite papers on any topic in the History of Linguistics and Linguistic Ideas and Practices. We also welcome proposals for panel discussions or thematic workshops. Please note that the website (https://hss-2025.sciencesconf.org) will be available from 15 November 2024.

Proposals for open panels or thematic workshops should be submitted online
(https://hss-2025.sciencesconf.org) by 15 December 2024. Proposals should include:

• Name of the organizer(s)
• Institutional affiliation
• Short statement (ca. 100-150 words) giving the rationale for the panel
• (List of participants if already available)

All other proposals should be submitted online (https://hss-2025.sciencesconf.org) by 31 January 2025. Proposals should include:

• Name
• Institutional affiliation (if any)
• Email address
• Abstract (max. 250 words, written in the language the paper will be presented in)

Notification of acceptance will be made by 31 March 2025.

Presentations should not exceed 20 minutes allowing for 10 minutes of discussion.

The regular conference fee for members of the Henry Sweet Society is 100€. The conference fee includes coffee breaks and lunch. For more information, please visit the website (https://hss-2025.sciencesconf.org).

If you are not yet a member of the Society, please consider joining. Note that the Henry Sweet Society membership fee includes free access to the journal Language & History (3 issues a year, online-first and back issues: https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/ylhi20). Here is how to join: https://www.henrysweet.org/join-the-society.

Postgraduates, early career scholars and other deserving candidates are encouraged to consider applying for the Martin Burr Travel Bursary (https://www.henrysweet.org/martin-burr-travel-bursary) by 31 May 2025.